The NBA is back after one of the shortest offseasons in sports history. They’re playing their usual Christmas Day schedule, and the star-studded, five-game slate should be a fun one for NBA DFS aficionados. Our DraftKings tournament lineup is using a relatively balanced approach but is targeting a few lower-cost sleepers to secure some of the biggest stars.
There are a few nice value plays in the $7K range who allow us to spend up elsewhere. Bam Adebayo, Caris LeVert, and Jaylen Brown should all be pretty safe picks to produce, and by spending down a bit for them, we were able to afford Anthony Davis and fill out the rest of our lineup with mid-tier values and sleepers who could pan out. There are a ton of different ways to create a lineup, though, so if you want to target a specific game or player, feel free to make some changes to this eight-man unit.
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NBA Christmas DFS: DraftKings Picks
PG Goran Dragic, Heat vs. Pelicans ($5,300). In his first game of the season, Dragic shot 61.5 percent from the floor and racked up 20 points and seven assists. He looked just as good as he did in the bubble, where his red-hot performance was one of the keys to sparking the Heat to a surprising NBA Finals run. The Pelicans held the Raptors to under 100 points in the season opener, but they allowed the fourth-most points per game last season (117.1). If they regress, Dragic can take advantage of that.
SG Jaylen Brown, Celtics vs. Nets ($7,000). Brown posted a well-rounded line in his first game with 33 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals, and a block. Brown will be the No. 2 to Jayson Tatum’s No. 1 as long as Kemba Walker is out, and this should be a revenge spot for him against his former teammate and locker-room malcontent, Kyrie Irving. Expect Brown to bring his A-game and try to outplay Irving.
SF Caris LeVert, Nets @ Celtics ($7,200). With much of the attention going to Irving and Durant this year, LeVert will fly under-the-radar a bit. LeVert posted a 20-9-5 line in the opener over the Warriors and had a 51-point game against the Celtics last year. He will be open enough to make an impact and should have a pretty good chance to outplay his reasonable price.
PF Maxi Kleber, Mavericks @ Lakers ($3,500). We needed one sub-$4K value for this lineup, and Kleber looks like a solid choice. Kleber saw 27 minutes of action in his first game of the season and put up 10 points. This matchup isn’t great for him, but spending down for him allows us to get a couple of other big men that should pan out.
MORE NBA DFS: FanDuel Christmas Lineup
C Anthony Davis, Lakers vs. Mavericks ($10,300). LeBron James rolled his ankle in the Lakers’ opener against the Clippers. His status is unclear, but even if he plays, he may rely more on Davis to carry the load in this matchup. Davis had what was merely a decent season opener, but he’s a double-double machine with a sky-high ceiling.
G Jeff Teague, Celtics vs. Nets ($4,200). Teague is going to be playing a lot of minutes for the Celtics as long as Kemba Walker is out. In his first action with the C’s, he looked great, totaling 19 points and making all four of his three-point shot attempts. Teague will be asked to add a scoring punch for the C’s, so at this low-level price, he’s absolutely worth using.
F Nicolas Batum, Clippers @ Nuggets ($4,500). Batum won’t be a huge scorer with the Clippers, but he started against the Lakers, played 28 minutes, and had six boards and six assists. He’s a safe producer, and on the off-chance that he can get on a mini hot streak and get a few buckets, he could get to 25 DK points, which would be a really nice value at this price.
UTIL Bam Adebayo, Heat vs. Pelicans ($7,800). Pairing Dragic and Adebayo seems like a good move against the Pelicans and their questionable defense. Adebayo had a big day in the Heat’s first game, and he is always a threat to post a double-double (or even a triple-double). Considering his sub-$8K cost, he is a strong value, and having him and Anthony Davis could be a boon for this lineup.